Police used pepper spray to scatter protesters at Hong Kong's government headquarters in an angry rally against plans for a new town development, with 21 arrested, officials said Saturday.

Around 900 people gathered at the city's harbourfront government complex with some trying to force their way into the building to oppose the project, which they say will displace villagers and turn farmland into housing estates -- favouring property developers.

Television footage showed protesters pushing over barricades and surging towards an entrance to the Legislative Council as lawmakers met to discuss funding for the development.

Police cordons inside and outside the building pushed back the rally late Friday as protesters tried to prise the doors open with bamboo sticks, shouting "Withdraw the plan".

They managed to smash a hole in a glass panel, which police inside then used to pepper-spray protesters, while lawmakers were forced to suspend the meeting.

Around 200 protesters then chained themselves together for a sit-in outside the building and anti-riot police were sent in to disperse them and make the arrests.

A police spokesman said a "minimal level of force" was used to handle the protest.

He added police had acted to remove the protesters upon a request from the Legislative Council -- the city's top lawmaking body.

Jasper Tsang, speaker of the Legislative Council, condemned the protest.

"We feel very regretful that some people disrupted the committee meeting of the Legislative Council through such means," he told reporters on Saturday.

Hong Kong suffers from a serious shortage of housing and government leader Leung Chun-ying made increasing supply a policy priority when he took office in 2012.

He hopes to cool record-high housing prices, which have rocketed due to an influx of investment from mainland China.

But concerns have been raised that the new housing projects threaten the city's nature reserves and will encroach on its country parks.

China today: Culprit, victim or last best hope for a global ecological civilisation?Leipzig, Germany (SPX) Jun 12, 2014
China, from 2015 the world's biggest economy, is its worst polluter already now. It has not yet, but will be most probably climbing the top position also with regards the aggregate contribution to climate change (historical emission residues included), called the climate debt.
At the same time, it is the largest victim of environmental change, and the leading country in cleaning-up the env ... read more

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes.
AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties.
Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement
All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.